The Saga of Darah Shan
by Newtons1Law
Summary: How would the series have gone if instead of Darren being a twelve year old boy...he was a seven year old girl? This is the saga of Darah Shan, the little sister of Steve Leonard. Fem!Darren, Fatherly!Larten Crespley, Steve-was-actually-a-good-big-brother-once.
1. The Saga of Darah Shan

_**"The thing about real life is, when you do something stupid, it normally costs you. In books the heroes can make as many mistakes as they like. It doesn't matter what they do, because everything works out in the end. They'll beat the bad guys and put things right and everything ends up cool. In real life, vacuum cleaners kill spiders. If you cross a busy road without looking, you get whacked by a car. If you fall from a tree, you break some bones. **__**Real life's nasty. It's cruel. It doesn't care about heroes and happy endings and the way things should be. In real life, bad things happen. People die. Fights are lost. Evil often wins. **__**I just wanted to make that clear before I begun."**_

_**― Darren Shan, A Living Nightmare**_

Her name had been Darah Shan and she had died on a cool February night, two weeks after the day she turned seven.

She did it for her siblings, it was going to save her big brother Stevie's life and it would protect her big sister Annie, from scary things that go bump in the night. She didn't care about her parents, Mommy was always fighting with Stevie and Daddy was always passed out drunk on the couch. She preferred it when Daddy didn't come home at all. Her big brother's full name was Steven Leonard, he was Mommy's son from another marriage. She and Annie had resulted from Mommy's second marriage to Daddy. They were happy. Maybe not like other families, with their perfect lives and homes. But Darah had Stevie and Annie. They were her family and she was their baby. They promised to protect her always. She just wished that they could have. Irony was a bitch.

"Please! Please! Please, Stevie! I promise I'll be good! I won't even tell Mommy or Daddy!"

Darah whined, clasping her hands together and rocking back and forth. Steve's eyes flicked from his begging baby sister, to the pair of tickets clenched in his fist. The creepy little creature at the ticket booth had only allowed him two tickets. He'd intended on taking one of his soccer buddies or Annie. Not little Darah, who was still too small to reach over the sink when it was time to brush her teeth. She still had to use a step-stool. He couldn't bring his second-grader, baby sister to a freak-show! She'd have nightmares for weeks! They probably wouldn't even let her in, and he'd have to sit outside baby-sitting her the entire time. Annie was sitting cross-legged on Steve's bed, already situating herself in their 'family-meeting'. The ten year old was chewing on her pink-painted fingernails when she shrugged at Steve's silent question.

"Just let her go with you, Stevie. She won't stop begging unless you do."

Steve grumbled under his breath and stuck his tongue out at Annie, bending down until he was at the same level as his baby sister, with her toothy grin and pigtails. He gripped her gently by the shoulders of her dress and she just watched him intently, hanging on his every word.

"Darah, you have to pay attention to me okay? We're going to the Saturday show and I'm going to take us there on my bike. But you can't tell anybody, okay?"

Darah nodded intently, before her big brother released her and she hurried back into her room across the hall. She hurriedly threw herself on the bed and giggled with glee. She was going to a freak-show with Stevie! It was almost too good to be true. She'd been staring at Stevie's flyer for over a week, memorizing the acts that were going to be preforming that night. _**'Sive and Seersa- The Twisting Twins; The Snake-Boy, The Wolf-Man, Gertha Teeth! Larten Crespley and his Performing Spider- Madame Octa; Alexander Ribs, The Bearded-Lady, Hans Hands! Rhamus Two-bellies- World's Fattest Man!'**_ She would announce them to herself as if she were a professional announcer. She would wonder about the show all night. She wondered what a snake-boy was, what he looked like or how long the bearded-lady's beard was, and even what Hans Hands and Gertha Teeth did. But most of all, she was just excited to be going somewhere with Stevie.

Saturday came quicker than Darah thought and before long, she was anxiously waiting for the day to pass. She tried to keep herself entertained by lining up her dolls and teddies for a pretend picnic, but nothing managed to keep her attention for more than a few moments. Stevie went outside to play soccer with his friends and Darah was left inside with Annie to try and avoid their parents. When night finally fell, Steve hurried back to grab his bike and to carry Darah into the night. Both siblings were grinning like jackals and Annie waved to them from her window. A small smile on her pink lips as she shuffled back to bed.

Steve tucked Darah against his chest, her skinny arms wrapped around his neck and her legs wrapped around his waist. It was the only way she felt safe when Stevie had her on his bike. He was a bit of a wild driver. But that night, the seven year old couldn't bring herself to care, she was too excited and too delighted to care about Stevie's reckless biking. Her thoughts were lost in those of glimmering snake-boys and the long beards of bearded-ladies. It was a very long bike ride, longer than either sibling had anticipated and they almost didn't make it on time. Steve had to madly peddle the last few blocks so that they'd be on time. He was panting like a dog by the time that they finally arrived.

Their venue was a really old theater that used to show black and white movies. Darah had walked by it a few times on her way to school. Stevie had once told her that it was shut down because a little boy had fallen off the balcony and was killed. He said that the dead little boy's spirit haunted the place. When Darah asked Annie about it, the ten year old had frowned and assured her baby sister that what Steve had said was a packet of baloney. That Steve was just trying to scare her into never going in that scary place. She could fall off of the balcony herself and get seriously hurt. Darah had to promise Annie that she would never go into the crumbly old building unless one of her older siblings was with her. They could protect her from the scary things inside such a building. There was no name outside and no cars parked outside, there wasn't even a waiting line or a working ticket booth. Steve climbed off of his bike and laid it against a tree as he bent down to try and get his breath back. Darah just stared at the building, it was tall and dark. It's entire surface was covered in jagged, gray stones. Lots of windows were broken and the door looked like the gaping maw of a monster, poised and ready to swallow them whole. Darah whimpered and clung to her big brother as he straightened up and took her hand. Flashing the young child a reassuring smile.

"Don't worry, Darry. It's fine, I'll protect you. You aren't scared, are you?"

For some reason the teasing and familiar nickname calmed her and allowed her to straighten up and cling to her big brother's hand as he led them inside. The second-grader almost tripped on her way up the steps, they were all cracked and moss-covered, making it difficult for her small feet to maneuver. But Steve scooped her up and deposited her at the top, before they went in together.

-TimeSkip-

Brother and sister found themselves standing in a long, dark, cold corridor. It was freezing and Darah pressed up closer to her big brother, trying to share his warmth. In a silent command, the two of them started walking. There was a light down at the end and to Darah's immense relief, it got lighter and lighter the closer they came. Once she could see well enough, she could see the state of the walls. They were scratched and scribbled on, and several bits of the ceiling were flaky. It was a really creepy place. That was when they almost ran into a door, it was old, wooden and ancient-looking. Steve stepped forwards to push it ajar and it creaked loudly. Darah bit her lip nervously, it sounded like the lid of a coffin being tugged open. But her big brother showed no fear and stuck his head inside. He made no sound for a few moments, but then he pulled back.

"It's the stairs up to the balcony." Steve whispered thickly, his voice filled with something that Darah couldn't place.

"Where the kid fell from?"

"Yes, do you think we should go up? I don't. It's dark up there, no sign of any sort of light. We'll try it if we can't find another way in, but I think..."

"Can I help you two?"

Steve was cut off by an unfamiliar voice in the half-darkness and Darah had to stifle her scream. She launched herself forwards and few inches to wrap her arms around her big brother. Steve was practically shaking himself as the two of them turned around quickly to see the tallest man in the world standing behind them. He was looking down at them, glaring at them as if they were vermin. He was so amazingly tall that his head almost touched the ceiling. His hands were ginormous and bony, his eyes were so dark that they looked like black coal shoved into his eye sockets.

"Isn't it a tad bit late for a boy and a little girl to be out and about?" The strange man asked, his voice was as deep and croaky as a frog's, but his lips didn't even seem to move. He would have made a wonderful puppeteer or maybe a ventriloquist.

"We're here to see the Cirque Du Freak."

Steve stared at his little sister in amazement as the little girl stepped forwards and declared her purpose. Darah wasn't even sure where that surge of courage had come from, but she whipped her and Steve's tickets out of his hand and laid them in the strange man's. he smiled sickeningly at the pair of them and Darah was surprised to feel her big brother practically shaking in his sneakers.

"Such defiance, little Darah Shan. Are you and your brother ready for the show?"

He knew her name, it made the seven year old's limbs freeze and go ice-cold. She studied his smile again, the black teeth where some were missing and the disgusting yellow tongue. "My name is Mr. Tall and I own the Cirque Du Freak."

"How did you know my little sister's name?"

That was Stevie's defiant streak, returning with a vengeance as he wrapped his arms protectively around his younger sister. Mr. Tall laughed again and bent in half like a straight board until he was eye-to-eye level with Darah's big brother. She could practically feel the gigantic man's stank breath as it blew past both of their pallid, half-moon faces. He grinned sharply one again, making even little Darah shake.

"I know lots of things. I know that you're sister is seven years old and that the pair of you have different fathers. I know that you hate your mommy and your sisters' daddy hurts you and them whenever he's drinking. I know that he's passed out drunk the majority of the day. I know you resent the way he hurts little Darah and I know that you're scared you might turn out like him. I know a great many things Steve Leonard. Do not underestimate me."

Darah's teeth were shaking along with the rest of her body as the tall man began to hurry the pair of siblings along, chastising them about being late to the show. He would take surprisingly small steps, Darah though that he would've taken bigger ones with such long legs. He turned a corner at the end of the corridor before shoving both children through a pair of double blue curtains and shouting after them.

"Walk straight down! We usually don't welcome children, but such brave ones as yourselves?! We'll make an exception!"

It was a huge room. The chairs had been ripped out of the theater long ago, but deck chairs had been set up in their place. The siblings searched around for and empty space. The theater was packed full, but they were the only children there. Darah could feel their stares and hear their whispers. The only available spaces were in the fourth row from the front, they had to shuffle past several people to get there, but once they sat down they realized that they could see the stage perfectly. The people around them were a mixed bunch, some dressed stylishly, others in track suits. Some were older than their parents, others were just a few years older than Steve. Some talked openly and others looked around nervously as if they were children stealing from the cookie jar.

Suddenly a bunch of trumpets blew and everybody fell silent. They blew for ages and ages, Darah wanted to cover her ears, it hurt so bad. Every light slowly went out around them until it was as dark as pitch. As soon as the trumpets stopped, somewhere high in the theater, a green light was switched on and the stage bathed in light. It was eerie and creepy. Steve refused to let go of Darah's hand and she didn't want him too. They watched as two men came out, pulling a covered cage. It was covered with what looked to be a badly sewn bear-skin rug. They stopped when they got to the middle of the stage, dropped the ropes and bolted back to the wings. The trumpets then proceeded to announce as the rug came flying off of the cage and the first freak was revealed.

That was when the screaming began...

-TimeSkip-

There was no real need for screaming. The freak in question was pretty shocking, but he was securely chained up inside the cage. They had probably screamed for fun. Inside the cage was the Wolf-Man. He was really ugly and covered in a grotesque amount of body hair. He only wore a loincloth around his middle, like Tarzan, so that the rest of his body was on display. His eyes were a sickening yellow and his teeth were stained red. The creature shook the bars of his cage and roared. It was terrifying and Darah had to remind herself not to scream. The creature kept shaking the bars and jumping around before calming down, slowly. Until finally, he was sitting on his backside like a dog. That was when Mr. Tall began to speak.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, Welcome to the Cirque Du Freak. The home of the World's most remarkable human beings. We are an ancient circus. We have toured for five thousand years, bringing the grotesque to generation after generation. Our lineup has changed many times, but never our aim, which is to astound and terrify you! We present acts both frightening and bizarre, acts you can find nowhere else in the world. Those who are easily scared should leave now. I'm sure there are people who came tonight thinking that this was a joke. Maybe they thought that our freaks would be people in masks or harmless misfits. This is not so! Every act you see tonight is real. Each performer is unique. And none are harmless."

After he was done with his speech, he walked off. Two pretty women in shiny suits took his place, they unlocked the door to the creature's cage. Some people looked scared by nobody left. The creature was barking and howling until one of the ladies hypnotized him with her fingers. The other woman turned to the crowd.

"You must be very quiet, the wolf-man will not be able to hurt you as long as we control him. But a loud noise could wake him up and then he would be deadly!"

After that, they began to walk the hypnotized wolf-man through the crowd. His hair was a dirty gray color and he walked with a stoop like an old man. His calloused fingers hanging down low around his knees. The ladies stayed by his side, reminding people to stay quiet. You could even touch him if you wanted. Neither of the siblings wanted too, they were both scared that he would wake up and bite them if they tried. The wolf-man was about halfway through the crowd when a loud 'BANG' sounded in the distance. Neither sibling knew what caused the noise, but suddenly the wolf-man began to roar and he shoved the ladies away from him. Darah didn't scream, but she clung to her big brother with all her might. Steve wrapped his arms around his baby sister and pulled Darah nearly into his lap. Several people began screaming and those who were closest, threw themselves from their seats. One woman wasn't quick enough and the wolf-man dragged her from her seat. She was clearly screaming at the top of her lungs, but nobody even attempted to help her. The creature rolled her over onto her back and bared his teeth. She stuck out a hand to brush him away, but he dug his teeth into it and bit it clean off!

A few audience members fainted and several more began to scream and yell. Then, out of seemingly nowhere, Mr. Tall appeared behind the wolf-man and wrapped his powerful arms around him. The creature struggled for a few seconds , but Mr. Tall whispered something in his ear and he soon became limp in the tall man's arms. The crowd watched in silence as the injured woman kept on screaming, blood was pumping out the end of her wrist by the gallon. Steve and Darah wondered if she was going to die right there in front of them. But Mr. Tall returned just in time to pick up the severed hand and blow sharply on a whistle. Two strange little people in blue hoods ran forwards to assist Mr. Tall as he helped the woman sit up and stiff. Mr. Tall took hold of her gushing stump before reaching into his pocket and taking out a brown leather pouch. He sprinkled sparkly pink powder onto her wrist before he stuck the hand against it and sewed it right back on!

Right in front of his audience Mr. Tall had saved the woman's life. But he stood up and spoke solemnly. "Listen to me. I gave fair warning, I said this show was dangerous. This is not a nice, safe circus where nothing goes wrong. Mistakes can and do happen. That's why this show is banned. That's why we must play in old theaters in the middle of the night. Most of the time, things to smoothly and nobody gets hurt. But we cannot guarantee your safety. Another accident like this, could happen. Once again I say that if you are afraid, leave now, before it is too late!"

Steve and Darah looked at each other, but neither said anything. They stayed for the rest of the show.

If only she hadn't been so scared of looking like a coward in front of her big brother. Thy could have left and everything would've been fine. But no, she had to tough it out to the end. If only you, dear reader, knew how many times an older Darah wished that she'd fled that old theater with her big brother. That they'd gone home to Annie, Steve peddling with all the force in the world. If only she'd fled and never looked back...


	2. Go After Your Brother

**_"_****_A world of "if"s, but it would make no difference. If I could go back in time... but I couldn't. The past was behind me. The best thing now would be to stop looking over my shoulder. It was time to forget the past and look to the present and future." _**

**_― _****_Darren Shan, A Living Nightmare_**

As soon as Mr. Tall left the stage and the siblings nervously settled back into their seats, the second freak, Alexander Ribs, came out. He ended up making Darah laugh more often then not, so she considered him to be a comedy act. He was the skinniest man either sibling had ever seen. He looked like a skeleton! He would've been frightening if it weren't for his friendly smile. He ended up dancing around the stage to funny music in ballet clothes, which soon had everyone in the audience laughing. Then he began to stretch for all of them to see. He said that he was a contortionist. First, he made his head look like it had been cut off. Then he made it touch the floor. Then he pulled his hands around the backs of his legs and pulled his head through until it looked like it was growing out of his stomach! Then he began to twist himself up like a curly straw, he kept twisting and twisting before unwinding really fast. Then, he got two drumsticks with furry ends. He took the first drumstick and hit one of his bony ribs with it, it made a music note! Soon enough he was playing songs, a few Beatles and some theme tunes.

After Alexander left the stage, several acts followed. There was a man with two stomachs who could eat almost anything. A lady who's beard was so strong that nobody could cut it, but still felt soft like hair. She also spoke some weird barking seal language. Then there was a man who could beat anybody by running on his hands instead of his feet. Darah was delighted, none of those acts were truly scary, but they were entertaining. She wondered if the rest of the show would be like that. Instead, the lights around them seemed to dim even lower and the air around them grew cold. Mr. Tall's booming voice filled the theater,

"Ladies and Gentlemen, our next act is another unique and perplexing one. It can all be quite dangerous, so I ask that you make no noise and do not clap until you are told it is safe. Introducing Mr. Crepsley and Madame Octa."

A creepy-looking man proceeded to walk onto the stage. He was tall and wisp thin, with very white skin and only a small crop of orange hair on the top of his head. He had a large scar running down his left cheek. It reached to his lips and made it look like his mouth was stretching up the side of his face. He was dressed in dark red clothes and sandals, and carried a small wooden cage, which he put on a nearby table. When he was set, he turned around to face the crowd. He bowed and smiled like a madman. He looked even scarier like that, like a sickeningly frightening clown in a movie that Darah once saw. Then he started to explain his act. The little girl in the fourth row missed the first part of his speech because she wasn't looking at the stage. She was watching her big brother. For, when Mr. Crepsley walked out, there had been total silence, except for one person who had gasped loudly.

Her big brother, Steve.

Darah stared curiously at her brother, he was almost as white as Mr. Crepsley and he was shaking like a leaf. His hand that was clutched in Darah's was suddenly slick with sweat. His eyes were fixed on Mr. Crepsley, as though glued to him, and as she watched him watching the freak. The only though that crossed her mind was, "He looks like he's seen a ghost!"

"It is not true that all tarantulas are poisonous. Most are harmless as the spiders you find anywhere else in the world. And those which are poisonous normally only have enough poison in them to kill small creatures. But some are deadly! Some can kill a man with one bite. They are rare and only found in extremely remote areas, but they do exist. I have one such spider."

Mr. Crepsley stopped speaking in that strangely deep voice of his as he opened the door to the wooden cage. For a few seconds, everything was still. Until the largest spider Darah had ever seen, walked out. It was green and purple and red, with long hairy legs and a big fat body. She wasn't too scared of spiders, but that one looked terrifying. The spider crawled forwards then it's legs bent and it lowered it's body as if waiting for a fly. Just as Mr. Crepsley was explaining the second part of his act, two of the strange blue-hooded creatures led a goat onto the stage. It was making a frightened bleating noise and kept trying to run. The hooded pair managed to tie it to the table before leaving. The spider began to move when she saw and heard the goat. It crept to the edge of the table, where it stopped as if waiting for an order, Mr. Crepsley produced a shiny tin whistle from his pants pocket and blew a few short notes. The spider immediately launched itself at the goat and bit it, right in front of them.

"This flute is how I control Madame Octa. Though we have been together a long time, she is not a pet and would surely kill me if I ever lost it. The goat isn't dead, it's just paralyzed. I have trained Madame Octa to not kill outright with her first bite. The goat would die in the end, if we left it...there is no cure for Madame Octa's bite...but we shall finish it quickly.

The audience watched in grim fascination as the spider killed the goat right in front of there eyes. Then she began to crawl to the front of the stage. Mr. Crespley cautioned them not to move. The spider stopped on the edge of the stage and stood up on her back two legs like a dog. Mr. Crespley blew softly with the flute and she began to walk backwards. There was an emotion in his eyes that Darah couldn't place. It was almost as if he was scared. They began doing tricks together, as she spun a web on his mouth. Then he began chewing and licking on the web before swallowing it whole.

"Delicious. Nothing tastier than fresh spiderwebs they are a treat where I come from."

He was smiling as he said it, but there was something sad in those eyes of his. It made Darah want to give him a hug, scary or not. By the time that Mr. Crepsley and Madame Octa had left the stage, Darah turned to her brother only to find him staring after Mr. Crepsley. He didn't look as scared as he was before, but he didn't look like her happy-go-lucky big brother either.

"Stevie, what's wrong?"

He didn't answer.

"Stevie?"

"Sshhhhh!" He snapped and wouldn't say another word until he was sure that Mr. Crepsley was gone. He watched the door the odd-looking man had disappeared behind, for a few moments before he turned to his baby sister. There was fear and amazement shining in his eyes. "You have to get out of here, Darry. It's not safe anymore. He could hurt you and I'd never ever be able to save you!"

"The spider?"

"No! Mr. Crepsley!" Steve hissed and Darah looked at him in confusion. She explained to her big brother that all the orange haired man had done was play the flute. But he shook his head vehemently, swearing up and down that there was something wrong with the strange man. Finally he grasped Darah's shoulders and hissed in a low voice.

"Darry, hope to God that he doesn't know that I know. If he does...we might not make it out of here alive..."

-TimeSkip-

The air between the siblings was tense for the rest of the show, Steve didn't want to let his sister go and Darah was cross with him, therefore she didn't want to be near him. They watched several acts together in their awkward position, with Darah scowling viciously and halfway into her tense big brother's lap. Gertha Teeth and The Twisting Twins, both looked and seemed amazing. But it was the snake boy that enraptured her attention, he was absolutely stunning with his scales glinting in the dim light and he drug a smile to Darah's lips. He also gave a gentle wave at the girl, teeth glinting as brightly as his scales. The little girl was blushing as he left and was thankful that Steve didn't notice. When the lights came back on, both siblings climbed from their seats and headed towards the exit. Steve said nothing to his baby sister and she could tell from the serious look on his face that he was thinking. It was no use trying to talk to him while he was in one of his moods. When the rows in front of them cleared, it was Mr. Tall who was grinning at the pair of them as he waited by the long exit hall.

"Well Children, did you enjoy the show?"

"It was amazing!"

There were bustling people behind the pair of siblings, so they didn't have time to talk for long. Once they managed to make their way into the hall, Steve looked around nervously before leaning over and whispering in Darah's ear, four fateful words.

"Go back by yourself."

"What?" The seven year old asked as she stopped in shock to stare at her big brother. He had a crazed look in his dilated eyes as he stared back at his baby sister, the child that he was entrusted with. He had to protect her, it was his job as Darah Shan's big brother. "You heard! I'm not coming, I'm staying. I don't know how things will turn out, but I have to stay. I'll come home later, I promise...after I've..." Darah never heard the rest of what he said, she had time to cry out a muffled, "Stevie!" Before he shoved her forwards and ducked away into the darkness. Darah wanted to start crying as she began to shake like a leaf. She didn't know what to do, Stevie would be mad if she didn't obey him. He was the big brother.

She hurriedly started walking, turned the corner and continued down the long corridor to the exit. She began to walk slowly, thinking and the people in front of her got farther and farther ahead. Darah glanced behind her to realize that there was nobody there as well. That was when she spotted the door. It was the one that her and Stevie had stopped by on their way in. The staircase leading up to the balcony. The same balcony where that boy had fallen and died. She was about to do the very thing that Annie and Stevie had cautioned her not to do. She began to whisper to herself in order to keep up her moral.

"Okay. I'm staying! I don't know what Stevie's up too, but he's my big brother. If he gets into trouble, I want to be there to help him out! It's my job!"

Before she could change her mind, she threw open the door, slipped through and quickly shut it behind her. Her heart was pounding against the front of her chest like a drum and she bit her bottom lip nervously. She stood there for a very long time. Listening intently as the very last dregs of the audience filed out. She could hear their murmurs as they discussed the show in hushed, frightened, but still excited tones. Then they were gone and everything was painfully quiet. She thought that she'd be able to hear somethings, like somebody cleaning up, but there was nothing. It was as silent as death. She slowly climbed the steep steps of the staircase. Her eyes had gotten used to the dark and she could see pretty well. The steps themselves were old and creaky. She was half afraid that they would snap under her weight and send her plummeting to her death. But they held.

When she reached the top, she realized that she was standing in the middle of the balcony. It was dusty and dirty, cold too. She shivered and shook as she made her way to the front. She had a remarkably good view of the stage. The lights were still on and Darah could see everything in perfect detail. Nobody was around, not the freaks, not the pretty ladies or the blue-hoods. Not even Stevie. A few minutes later, she spotted a shadow creeping slowly towards the stage. It pulled itself up, then stood and walked to the center, where it stopped and turned around.

It was Steve.

Her heart sank as she watched her big brother start walking towards the left wing of the stage, then stop, and set off towards the right. He then stopped again. Darah could see him chewing on his fingernails, trying to decide which way to go. That was when a voice came from high above Steve's head, "Are you looking for me?", and Darah watched in horror as a figure swooped down onto the stage, it's arms out its sides, a long red cloak floating behind it like a pair of wings. Stevie almost jumped out of his skin when the figure hit the stage and rolled into a ball. Darah herself, toppled backwards, utterly terrified and very near to wetting her skirt. When she managed to rise to her converse-wearing feet again, the figure was standing and she was able to make out its red clothes, orange hair, pale skin and huge scar.

It was Mr. Crepsley.

She watched as Steve tried speaking through his chattering teeth, but the orange haired man ignored him, choosing to speak instead. "I saw you watching me. You gasped aloud when you first saw me. Why?" The older man's eyes were glinting dangerously and Darah whimpered silently.

"B-b-because I k-k-know who you a-are."

"I am Larten Crepsley."

"No! I know who you really are!" Steve insisted, eyes glimmering as he exclaimed. The older man just smiled, sickeningly, even patronizingly. "Oh? Tell me little boy, who am I really?"

"Your real name is Vur Horston! _**You're a vampire**_!"

Mr. Crepsley's eyes bugged in astonishment and the silence that followed Stevie's fateful words was all-consuming. It was terrifying and Darah wondered dimly what it was that her big brother had dragged them into. And would they really get out of it, alive?

-TimeSkip-

Darah just tried desperately to catch her breath as her brother and the vampire talked right below her. Steve was explaining that he'd seen a painting of Vur Horston in a book once and had paired him up with Mr. Crepsley. Suddenly it looked as if the vampire was narrowing her big brother into a corner threatening him, threatening his life. Darah wanted to scream, but no sound passed her lips. She could see the fright in her brother's eyes and she wished desperately that they had just gone home, that they'd biked back to Annie. Anything to escape a mad vampire.

"You won't hurt me! My baby sister! I told her all about you and if anything happens to me, she'll tell the police."

"Why would they believe a little girl?"

"They probably won't, but if I turn up missing or dead, they'll have to investigate. You won't want that, now would you? Lots of police asking questions, coming around here in the daytime..." Steve explained, his voice taking on a fevered pitch. Whilst Mr. Crepsley just shook his head in disgust. "Children! I hate children! What is it that you want? Money, jewels, the rights to publish my story?" The vampire snarled, but it was Stevie's next words that made Darah's heart clench in her chest and the child to nearly fall from her balcony.

"I want to join you. Make me a vampire too."

Darah was practically crying as she watched her big brother beg to be a vampire, beg to be taken away from them. It was just as painful as if he'd said that he didn't love her or Annie. He wanted to leave them all alone in that godforsaken house with their ever-drunk parents and horribly abusive father. Couldn't he tell that they'd die without him?

"Why do you want to be a vampire? It is not much fun. We can only come out at night, Humans despise us. We have to sleep in dirty old places like this. We can never marry or have children or settle down. It is a truly horrible life."

"I don't care." Steve's voice was truly beginning to waver and Darah felt glad.

"What about your family? That little girl you came with tonight, your little sister, what would she do without you?" Mr. Crepsley looked almost kind for a moment, or maybe it was just the lighting.

"Darah? She and Annie would be so much safer with me gone. They wouldn't have to deal with Mom's screaming. I don't think Dad will hurt them anymore with me gone. Mom will protect them, she has too! He'll kill them otherwise! Heck, if I stay...he'll kill me!"

Mr. Crepsley showed no shock at Stevie's exclamation, but there was a deep sadness and pity in his eyes that just couldn't be disguised. He finally agreed and allowed Steve to come closer. Darah wanted to scream and cry, anything to get her big brother to run away. But she did nothing, no sound came. She looked away as there was a sound like a cat lapping up milk. Suddenly her ears were filled with the sound of coughing. She quickly turned back in time to see Steve being pushed away from the vampire, who was bent over as he sputtered and hacked. The vampire proceeded to scream and yell that Steve had bad blood, that he was evil and cursed. That he was nothing but a savage. Darah watched as her big brother swore revenge on the vampire and was sent running into the night. She nearly screamed as the vampire raised his head and her eyes met his. He mouthed something at her, but she was running away too fast to hear the actual words.

**_'Go after your brother.'_**

-TimeSkip-

Darah was crying, sobbing even as she curled under the kitchen table, Annie was crooning and trying to comfort her as they heard Steve's screams along with their father's bellows and mother's screeches. Her arm was bleeding badly, it had been cut in a long shallow curve by the beer bottle that her father had thrown at her. Annie tried desperately to muffle her baby sister's cries. Neither sister had noticed the wooden cage that Stevie had stowed in his closet.

A cage with eight eyes gleaming inside.


	3. All The Time In The World

**_"If I'd known how wrong I was - if I'd had any idea of the awful night that lay ahead - I'd have run after him and never returned to that disgusting circus of blood, that revolting circus of death." _**

**_― Darren Shan_**

Darah tried to avoid her big brother, but only managed to do so for a few days. It had only worked before because Annie had been angry with him, as she freshly bandaged the deep cut on her baby sister's arm. It was Steve fault that Darah had gotten hurt. He was the one shouldn't have taken Darah to the freak-show and put her in harm's way. But as stated before, she couldn't avoid him forever, and that came to an end when Stevie gently knocked on her bedroom door one afternoon. He held a candy bar as a peace-offering as he walked into her room and sat down gently on her bed. She just stared at him, diary open in her lap. She quickly closed it and shoved it into the bottom drawer of her dresser as she came to stare at him. He broke the silence first. "Why are you avoiding me, Darry? I was wondering if I did something wrong. Then I figured it out. You didn't go straight home that night, after the freak-show, didn't you? You stayed and you saw everything, didn't you?"

"I didn't care, Stevie. What ever happened with you and Mr. Crepsley...Stevie he's a vampire! A blood-sucking monster! You let him drink from you! You wanted to leave us...don't you love us?"

Then her strong accusation, turned into hiccuping tears as her big brother pulled her into a tight hug. He was crooning and rocking her gently, pulling her into his lap just as he used to do when she was just a toddler. He began to assure her softly, swearing that he would never leave them. That of course he loved her and Annie. Stevie began to cry then, and Darah was reminded of the fact that Steve was only twelve, he wasn't the full-grown man that Darah had always seen him as being. It took a while for both of their tears to stop, but when they did, the younger sister wrapped her big brother into a tight hug.

"Don't cry Stevie, I'm sorry. But we never have to go back there again, right?"

"No, we won't. Hey, can I show you something?"

Darah nodded in response to her big brother's question as he picked her up and set her on the ground. She followed him to his room, it obviously belonged to a twelve year old boy, given by its messiness and the like. Darah curled up on Stevie's bed, legs crossed underneath of her body. That was when her blood ran icy as Steve pulled a wooden cage from his messy closet. It was a spider, Madame Octa, from the Cirque Du Freak. She was speechless as Steve pulled Mr. Crepsley's flute from the inside of the cage. He began to play a tune and the spider began to do a few tricks. After a while, Darah began to relax and actually became captivated in her big brother's joy. He made the spider crawl up the back of his neck and tickle his ears with it's legs. Stevie giggled softly and obliviously felt more competent as he moved the spider to the front of his face, where she built small cobwebs over his eyes and slid down his nose to bounce off his chin. Both siblings were enjoying themselves as Madame Octa posed on Steve's right shoulder, preparing to slide down his arm, when Annie walked in.

Normally, Annie would never enter Stevie's room without permission. The only room she would enter unannounced was Darah's. She was a really cool big sister, not like she could've been. She always knocks politely and waits for a reply. But that evening, by sheer bad luck, she happened to barge in. She started to say something, but then stopped. She saw Stevie and the monstrous spider on his shoulders, it's fangs glinting as though getting ready to bite, Annie did the natural thing. She screamed. The sound alarmed Steve, his head turned, exposing his neck as the flute slipped from his mouth. Darah screamed as well as Madame Octa lowered her head, quick as a snake and sank her poison-tipped fangs into his neck.

Stevie stiffened as soon as the spider bit him. His own scream died in his throat, his lips turning blue and his eyes snapped wide open. For what seemed like an eternity, even though it was only three or four seconds, Steve tottered on his feet. Then he crumpled to the floor like a puppet with it's strings cut. The fall was what saved him, it dislodged the spider who was thrown away from him in the impact. Darah wasn't sure how she did it, but she screamed inside her mind when she saw Madame Octa poised to bite Steve again. "STOP!" The spider stiffened and and basically threw itself back into the cage as Darah leapt from the bed to come to rest next to her big brother. He wasn't moving. The only thing that betrayed that he was still alive, was the movement of his chest. Annie was still screaming, but Darah ignored her as she stood and kicked the stupid spider into the closet. Darah would've run back to Steve, but Annie wrapped her arms tightly around Darah and shoved her away from Steve.

"Darry, go get Mom. We've got to go to the hospital. Don't tell her about the spider. Just go."

Annie knelt by Steve, checking his pulse and looking into his eyes. They were open. His eyes looked weird and were scaring the ten year old, so she closed them. Not wanting little Darah to be frightened. Whilst, seven year old Darah bolted down the stairs, screaming for her mother.

-TimeSkip-

The EMTs were asking them all sorts of questions, Darah just hid her face in Annie's shirt. She was assured by the feeling of Annie's arms around her. Their mom answered most of the questions, leaving the pair of siblings to just stare at their prone big brother. Once they got to the hospital, it all became one big blur. It was the whitest place that Darah had ever seen, white walls, white floors, white uniforms. It wasn't very busy but it still buzzed with tense energy. She was thirsty, so Annie took her to the drink machine around the corner of the long white hallway. Annie assured her younger sister that everything would be alright when she really had no idea of what she was doing. She told her baby sister to think happy thoughts, it would make Steve pull through. It just had too. They took the drinks back to the waiting room couches and drank in silence.

They spent the next few days, bouncing around from home to hospital and vice-versa. Annie assured her that doctors would fix him, that Steve would recover on his own as Darah formulated a real plan. She sat up alone at night, thinking of things she could do to save her brother as she slipped out of bed and walked towards Stevie's room. She bent down and opened his closet, drawing Madame Octa's cage out and into the open. She was sitting inside, lying in the middle, breathing calmly as ever. She was bright, ugly, hairy and nasty. Darah couldn't comprehend why Steve had stolen her. The seven year old girl, hated the stupid spider. She was the real villain, it wasn't Stevie's fault. She was the one who'd bitten him for no good reason! Darah suddenly shook with anger as she gripped the cage tightly and shook it hard.

"You stupid monster! Ungrateful creep!"

She gave the cage another hefty shake, hoping the hurt the stupid creature that had caused her and her brother so much pain. She spun in a circle, whirling the cage around by the handle. She was swearing, calling the monster every name under the sun. She wished that the creature was dead, wishing that they'd never gone to that freak-show, wining that she had the guts to take her out of the cage and squeeze her to death with her own bare hands. Finally, her rage reached her peak and she hurled the cage as far away from her as possible. She grinned manically, tears bubbling in her eyes when she saw it sail through the open window and out into the night. Darah ran to the window to watch the cage as it hit the ground, only just before it hit a hand extended from the night and snatched it from the air.

Darah leaned forwards quickly for a better view. It was a dark night and she couldn't see much. But then the person stepped forwards and all was revealed. First, she saw the hands holding the cage. Then his red clothes. Then the long ugly scar. And, finally, the sharp toothy grin. It was Mr. Crepsley. The vampire.

And he was smiling up at Darah!

The seven year old was frozen by the window, expecting him to turn into a bat and come flying up. But he did nothing but shake the cage gently to make sure Madame Octa was alright. It may have been a trick from the lack of light, but he almost looked somber as he saw the tears shining in Darah's eyes. Then he turned away and left, within moments he'd been swallowed by the night. Leaving Darah able to do nothing but sink to the ground and sob loudly. Burying her face in her knees and crying for all that she was worth at the unfairness of it all.

The next day, they learned that Stevie wasn't doing well and he would surely die if thy couldn't locate the source of the poison. Darah spent hours just sitting with her big brother, he was tucked neatly into the hospital bed and was too still. A drip was attached to one arm and wires and stuff to his chest. There were needle marks where doctors had taken samples of his blood. His face was white and stiff. He looked utterly terrible! She started crying then and she couldn't stop, Annie put her arms around her baby sister and hugged her tight, but that only made it worse. She tried to explain to her big sister about the spider, but was crying too much for her words to be heard. Annie kept hugging and kissing her, and eventually she quit trying. But there was only one way to save Steve. Only one person who might know about the poison and how to beat it. Mr. Crepsley. The vampire.

As they arrived back home that night, she made up her mind. She was going to track down the vampire and make him do what he had too to help Steve. As soon as it got darker, she'd sneak out and find the vampire. Wherever he might be. And if she couldn't force a cure out of him, then she wouldn't come back at all.

-TimeSkip-

Darah had to wait until it was almost eleven o'clock. She would have gone earlier, but Annie had insisted upon tucking her in and that took a while. She sped through the house like a comet. Nobody saw her or heard her, she moved so fast. She had a cross in one pocket and a bottle of holy water in the other. She didn't know where to go, so she headed back to that old theater. It was pitch black and deserted, so much scarier than it had been when Stevie was with her. It took a while to find the cellar. She'd brought a flashlight but the battery was near dead and it flickered out after a couple of minutes, leaving her to grope through the dark like a mole. When she finally found the steps, she hurried down them quickly. The farther she went, the brighter the light got, until she reached the bottom and saw five tall flickering candles. She was surprised, weren't vampires supposed to be scared of fire?

Mr. Crepsley was waiting for her at the other end of the cellar. He was sitting at a small table, playing a game of cards with himself. "Good morning, Little Miss Shan." The vampire said, without looking up.

"It's not morning. It's the middle of the night."

"For me, it is morning." The vampire said, before looking up and grinning. His teeth were long and sharp. It was the closest to him that she'd ever been and she'd expected to see things like red eyes, and fangs. Things that an evil creature should've had. But he looked like a tremendously ugly normal guy. That was when it hit her. Her cross and holy water were useless. He may have been a vampire. But he wasn't evil.

"H-Have you been waiting for me?"

Darah stammered and the vampire nodded his confirmation. When she asked why, is when the vampire moved closer to her. "Why indeed? Tell me, Darah Shan, why is it that you have come? Is it to steal from me, just as your brother did? Do you desire Madame Octa?" She shook her head vehemently and rolled her eyes. "Please don't make fun of me. I'm not stupid."

"Oh, and what will you do if I continue? Strike me with a cross? Maybe holy water?" Mr. Crepsley continued to tease, getting closer and closer to her as he did so. "No. Because you're not evil." The vampire froze, the confusion clear on his face as Darah was the one who closed the space between them and reached up towards the vampire's face and the grizzly scar on his face. Mr. Crepsley was gaping at the little girl in shock as her finger ghosted over his scar. Her lips were pursed in maybe annoyance or anger, he couldn't tell. "Does it hurt? Maybe if you'd cleaned it correctly, it wouldn't have scarred so badly." She clucked as if she was disappointed in him and the vampire threw himself away from her.

"I don't know if you're mad, or suicidal! But a child your age should be terrified of me!"

"Why?"

"Because of horror movies, of comic books! Because children should be terrified of vampires, of monsters, of the boogeyman. What a strange child you are, Little Miss. What is it that you wanted?" Mr. Crepsley asked and Darah looked down at her mary-janes. She toed the ground gently before speaking softly, hurt filling her voice.

"She bit Stevie, my big brother."

"Ah yes, that one. A nasty business. Still, little boys who play with things that they don't understand can hardly complain if..." Mr. Crepsley explained somberly as Darah cut him off, her voice shaking. "I want you to make him better, please." Darah begged and the vampire cut her off gently, with the way of a well-calloused hand and a low murmuring. "I cannot do that, Little Miss. I am not a doctor. I am just a circus performer, a freak. Remember? But for every poison there is a cure, an antidote. Maybe I do have the cure. Maybe I have a bottle of serum that will restore your friend's natural physical functions. But maybe it is a small bottle. Maybe there is only a tiny amount of serum. Maybe it is very precious. Maybe I want to save it for a real emergency, in case she ever bites me. Maybe I do not want to waste it on an evil little brat."

"No! You have to give it to me! You have to use it on Stevie. He's dying. You can't let him die. I can pay for it." Darah begged, but Mr. Crepsley shook his head, turning away from her tear-stained eyes.

"Pay for it? But you are only a little girl. You cannot possibly have enough money to buy the cure. But it is no matter, your money does not interest me."

"What does interest you? I'm sure you have a price, that was why you waited for me isn't it?" Mr. Crepsley grinned and began to answer. "You are clever, aren't you Little Miss? I knew that when instead of running home, you stayed to spy on your big brother. Even if you knew I could kill you...you didn't leave. And then, you don't run...even now?" Darah blinked up at the man and clenched her fists, shaking her head strongly. The vampire fell silent and he motioned for Darah to come closer to him.

"Do you remember what your brother and I talked about? About assistants and half-vampires? I was not too keen on the idea at first, but now that I think about it, I have decided that it might not be such a bad thing after all. An assistant could be just what the witch-doctor ordered. But I do not want your brother anymore, Little Miss." The vampire was smiling as Darah's stomach sunk. He pointed at the little girl with a long bony finger and she knew what he was going to say, even before the man said it.

"Y-You want me?"

-TimeSkip-

"Okay. I'll do it, if you can save my big brother. What exactly does a vampire's assistant do?" Darah asked softly and Larten Crepsley smiled.

"You will be my traveling companion, you will travel with me during the day, we will travel the world. You will be my hands and eyes during the day. You will guard me while I sleep. You will find food for me if it is scarce. You will take my clothes to the laundry. You will polish my shoes. You will look after Madame Octa. In short, you will see to my every need and in return. I will teach you about the ways of the vampires."

Mr. Crepsley growled and Darah nodded slowly. The vampire pulled Darah towards him him and pushed the table aside. He raised his right hand and showed Darah the back of it. His nails weren't especially long but they looked rather sharp. He raised his left hand and pressed the nails of the right into the fleshy tips of his left-hand fingers. Then he used the other set to do the same to the other side. He winced as he did so. He then snatched up Darah's hands and dug his nails into the soft tips of her fingers, all ten of them at once. She whimpered in pain, but didn't cry out. He put a couple of her fingers in his mouth, tasting the dripping blood, testing it before releasing them. He then pressed his fingers against hers, bloody wound to bloody wound. For a few seconds there was a numb feeling at the ends of her arms. Then she felt a gushing sensation and realized that her blood was moving from her body to his, while vice-versa through her other hand.

It was a strange, tingling feeling. She felt his blood travel up her right arm, then down the side of her body and over to the left. When it reached her heart, there was a stabbing pain and she almost collapsed, the same thing was happening to Mr. Crepsley. The pain lasted until Mr. Crepsley's blood reentered his body. They remained together for a few moments before breaking away with a shout. She was dizzy and felt sick.

"Give me your fingers. My spit will heal the wounds. You will lose all your blood and die otherwise."

The vampire took her bloody hands in his and stuck them in his mouth, running his rough tongue over the surface. When he released them, the flow of blood had stopped. She wiped off the leftover blood with a rag. She saw her fingers and her eyes widened when she saw that they now had ten tiny scars running across them.

"That is how you recognize a vampire. There are other ways to change a human but the fingers are the simplest and least painful method. It will take a few days for the effects of vampiric blood to take effect. I would explain more, but there is too much to do so. We must tend to your brother. If he doesn't get the antidote soon, the serum will not work. Besides, we will have plenty of time to speak about such things, Little Miss."

"You could say we have all the time in the world..."


End file.
